Boy From Oz... uh.... speechless....

[mad4music]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 12:46am

I am currently on somewhat of a Broadway Cast Recording craze... trying to expand and develop my collection...

Unfortunately my town has basically NO music stores that sale Brdwy stuff so when I actually saw the CD "Boy From Oz" on the rack I was thrilled! I hadn't really heard much about it but I am a big Stephanie J. Block fan and couldn't wait to hear how awesome this CD must be...

....well... after getting home and popping the thing in... I literally had to FORCE myself to listen to the whole CD! ALL OF THE SONGS HAVE NO MELODY AND SOUND THE EXACT SAME!!!!!!!!!!!!! Arg!!! I was not happy. In short- the music is crap. I will give credit to the song the little boy sings in the beginning and also Steph's "Love to Hear the Music" (HOLY COW! now THAT was amazing! Too bad there wasn't MORE of her!)...but as for Hugh Jackman.. lets just say: MAJOR LET DOWN!

Anyone go see the show? Is it better live? Any Oz fans out there?

...I dunno... maybe I just have to let it grow on me...

????

[C is for Company]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 12:52am

Hah, when I read the title I wondered if that was a positive speechless or negative. I see you chose wisely

[jimmirae]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 1:14am

I loved the score. Perhaps that is why your town doesn't carry Broadway CD's?

[JoyfulSound2]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 1:16am

I love 'Come Save Me', 'You and Me', and yeah... a lot of others from the show. Didn't get a chance to see it though so can't tell you if it's better live or not. Maybe it'll grow on you. If not, you can send it to me!!

[Phantom487]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 1:17am

I saw the show on Broadway and LOVED IT! I got the CD right after, and come to think of it... I don't think I've ever listened to the whole thing... only 1 or 2 that I like. This show was a hell of alot better LIVE! There were talks of a DVD release of the show right before it closed, but it never happened. Too bad because the CD doesn't do it justice at all...

[hushpuppy]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 1:21am

Not only did I see, and love, the show, I was a big fan of Peter Allen's as well. I just shake my head when someone makes an idiotic blanket statement such as 'All of the songs have no melody and sound exactly the same'. You certainly have the right not to like a particular show and/or music, but an inane comment like that just exposes your ignorance. How you can say 'Quiet Please' and 'Bi-Coastal' (just to pick two songs) sound alike is beyond me.

[ALWrules]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 1:30am

I never saw the show but I LOVE the soundtrack. I think Hugh Jackman is fantastic and the music is a lot of fun. I also think there is a good amount of diversity in it(at least when you compare to other current broadway scores.)

[Popular]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 2:27am

My deep dark naughty SJB fan secret is that I don't own a copy of this ...YET. And I'm so sad that the show closed before I even knew of her but I'm in L.A. so it probably wouldn't have worked out anyway. Anyway, I'm going off on a tangent - the good news is that I HAVE heard a lot, if not most, of the songs and I adore them. Wish I could've heard them live.

[Celestial Entropy]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 3:48am

The show was good... it was more about Peter than it was the music, and Hugh did an awesome job portraying him.

If you think the little boy singing was good on the CD... you should have seen him perform... the kid had a stellar performance.

[stage_door76]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 4:41am

No cast recording can ever give a completely accurate glimpse at what the production was like, merely a smaller, watered-down taste.

Musical theater is not only about the vocals and orchestrations, the power of live performance can make even the dullest of scores work. You only need to have seen The Full Monty to know what I mean :)

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 6:22am

The reason that the show did so well was because of the draw that was Hugh Jackman, lol. I guarentee that without him the show would have closed MUCH earlier. The show itself isn't very strong at all, there are several songs I like a lot, but it wouldn't have been worth my going if I didn't get to see and meet Hugh.

[MusicAndPassion]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 6:39am

It may take time to appreciate it and like it.

But I found the score fun, deep and powerful.

[spiderdj82]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 6:53am

"I honestly Love You" is GORGEOUS on the cast recording.

[jo]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 7:27am

I loved this show ( and Hugh Jackman on it )-- the memory of the closing performance is one of my most vivid recollections of what theatre is all about! There was such a huge interaction between the performer and the audience that the fourth wall must have disintegrated on that day. But that is also the essence of Peter Allen - how he loved to reach the audience with his songs ...and how he loved to interact with his concert audiences.

The musical score is not the typical legit set of songs and lyrics - it is taken from the large repertoire of Peter Allen compositions ( one of which won an OSCAR - Arthur's Theme) and since they were mostly autobiographical, they found close fit with the musical bio-pic. I love many of the songs, especially in the context of the stage musical. One bonus track ( not found in the show) which tells of the story of Peter Allen in a very poignant manner, TENTERFIELD SADDLER, is worth the price of the CD alone. My favourite song from the show is the overture song ALL THE LIVES OF ME and I couldn't listen to ONCE BEFORE I GO without remembering what a wonderful this show was!

Listen to it again...and again

Jo

[children&art]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 9:39am

i got this CD immediately after seeing the show on a trip to NY.

the show was one of the most singular theatrical experiences i have ever had, yes i know it was a weak book and used recycled songs but sitting in the audience i felt like i was the only one in the theatre and that the show was being performed just for me. that has to do with hugh jackman, a phenomenal actor who brought this story to life but made it seem effortless and easy and really connected with his audience.

now when i listen to this cd i am instantly taken back to that night and the same goofy smile spreads across my lips. i am sure that had i gotten this cd prior to experiencing it live there would have been a great disconnect, but now i listen and there is a connection!

[Emilia]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 9:44am

I think this is a recording that has to grow on you espcially if you didn't see the show, i saw the show and was amazed at Hugh Jackman's performance and vocal talents however I admit my heart sank when I first heard the recording because nothing could compare to the performance he gave live... however, then I started remembering all that went with the songs and loved it.

Also as mentioned it should be remembered that the show was made using the songs of Peter Allen so it is never going to sound like traditional broadway personally I like Peter's music so I enjoy the CD for that too, but if you don't like it well it's like trying to enjoy Mama Mia as a recording if you can't stand ABBA-it's not going to happen (and trust me I tried with mama mia )

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 10:13am

I enjoy this recording. Not because it is monumental, or perfection, but because its just a fun listen with a superb cast and some great songs. It may have helped to see the show, as listening to it brings back fond memories of this camp classic.

"I just love playing singing communists."
Updated On: 1/5/06 at 10:13 AM

[BwayBaby18]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 10:15am

i thought SJB was the worst Liza ever....it should have been cast with a drag queen from the village, he would have done soooooooo much better!

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 10:16am

I loved BFO. It was probably one of the most entertaining shows I've ever seen (have seen hundreds). Hugh was amazing. If you want to simply comment on the music, though, I'd recommend you get the actual Peter Allen cds and listen to HIM singing HIS music. His songs definitely do NOT all sound the same. He was an amazingly talented singer/songwriter and his music is beautiful, both poignant and fun. I grew up on his music because my grandmother knew him. :)

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 11:14am

well all of the songs are Peter Allen songs right? So, you can't really expect them to be all theatrical and whatnot. I didn't really like what I've heard of the show, but it doesn't really interest me anyways.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 11:20am

From what I have heard, it took Block a while to grow into the role. I saw her towards the mid-end of the run, and thought she was great. My friend who I was with saw her early on, and said she improved greatly. That role was so horribly written, plus Block had to find the middle ground between character and caricature. She has the cheesiest of the lines, and most of her scenes with Peter were unintentionally funny.

[Popular]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 12:40pm

"i thought SJB was the worst Liza ever....it should have been cast with a drag queen from the village, he would have done soooooooo much better!"

BwayBaby18 - she was not hired to do an impersonation of Liza, but rather to play her as a character. Does that make sense? I don't know what you were expecting to see, and you have every right to your opinion, but to put her performance into a little context for you, here is a little bit of Steph's answer from an interview of her talking about the process of becoming Liza...

"I think my character under went the most changes...No, I KNOW my character did. It's a very delicate balance to build a character on a living, breathing icon. We wanted to be truthful to the story and to Liza's life, but we also had to service the play and get the response from the audience we were hoping for. So my wigs changed over and over, my costumes weren't set until a couple of days before opening and lines and songs were changing by the minute. So my 4 weeks of previews were a little unsettling. Of course, I wanted us to get the best product, but I also wanted a chance to live in a show that was set. My show was finally frozen 2-3 days before critics came. I'm not apologizing or making excuses, I'm just telling you about the process and the way things played out. It was one of the most challenging times for me...previews, I mean. But all the way through, Hugh and the rest of the cast were amazing and supportive and encouraging finding words of comfort. I would come to messages from William Ivey Long telling me he had never seen an actress undergo as "much" as I had. I appreciated that call so much! It reassured me that I was doing all the right things and inspired me to keep on working and take all the "punches." I knew the light at the end of the tunnel wasn't too far off."

And as other people have said before, she DID eventually settle into the role after the constant changes stopped being thrown at her. She also talked about the challenges of playing parts of Liza that the public very rarely got to see such as her just lounging at home, etc. Some people think Stephanie didn't do a good job because she wasn't always playing the Liza that you see on stage at the later part of her career. But her character went through a LOT of years in such a short amount of acutal stage time that it wouldn't have been appropriate for her to JUST be that Liza that we recognize (that the drag queens do). Apparantly people who are very close to Liza said Stephanie got her earlier years and more private moments down pretty well.

OK, back to talking about the RECORDING, which I believe was the original topic...

[children&art]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 1:20pm

Does anyone know if Liza ever came to see "The Boy from Oz"? I think, if she did, she would have LOVED Hugh Jackman to pieces and been touched at Isabell Keating's portrayal of "momma".

[jacobtsf]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 1:24pm

I am almost positive she did (i think there was a broadway.com photo thing)

[Scott3]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 1:26pm

Although the performers are fine, you're right - the OBC is like something you would hear in an elevator.